I'm solo-traveling to Japan for the first time and want the right balance of maximizing my time without overloading every day. I'll probably travel in late October or November. Any thoughts, advice, or recommendations are appreciated!
I imagine pulling a suitcase around between the city transfers will be tiring, but I'm open to tips. I hope to travel with 1 backpack and 1 suitcase with my clothing, then on the last day and a half of shopping, purchase a large travel suitcase to load up with the goodies I buy.
Day 1: Travel Day
- Afternoon: flight lands in Narita
- Evening hotel: Asakusa
Day 2: East to West Tokyo
- Early Morning: Asakusa (Senso-ji temple, Nakamise Street)
- Later Morning & Afternoon: Akihabara (just window shopping)
- Evening: Shinjuku (Golden Gai, Omoide Yokocho, Kabukucho)
- Evening hotel: Shinjuku
Day 3: West Tokyo
- Early Morning: Meiji shrine & yoyogi park
- Later Morning & Early Afternoon: Harajuku (Takeshita Street & Cat Street)
- Late Afternoon – Evening: Train to Kyoto
- Evening hotel: by Kyoto station
Day 4: Kyoto
- Early Morning: East Kyoto (Fushimi Inari, Kiyomizu-dera, Yasaka pagoda, Kodaiji temple)
- Afternoon: Gion & Kawaramachi streets
- Evening: Pontocho Alley & Yasaka Shrine
- Evening hotel: Kyoto station
Day 5: Nara
- Early morning: train to Nara
- Morning & Afternoon: Nara (Famous mochi shop, Nara park/deer, Todai-ji, kofuku-ji)
- Late Afternoon: train to Osaka
- Evening hotel: by Dotonbori
Day 6: Osaka
- Morning: Osaka castle exterior, America-mura
- Afternoon: Namba Yasaka Jinja, Den den town, Shinsekai district
- Evening: Doton-bori
- Evening hotel: Dotonbori
Day 7: Tokyo shopping day
- Morning: train from Osaka to Tokyo
- Afternoon: drop luggage off at Shibuya hotel & Ginza shopping
- Evening: Shibuya crossing and Shibuya sky
- Evening hotel: Shibuya
Day 8: Light shopping and fly back
- Morning: Shibuya shopping
- Afternoon: train to Haneda Airport
- Evening: fly back to US
by Ok-Hat-3191